Wolfe Research Begins Coverage on Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA)

Wolfe Research assumed coverage on shares of Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) in a research report sent to investors on Thursday, Marketbeat reports. The brokerage issued a peer perform rating on the electric vehicle producer’s stock.

A number of other brokerages have also weighed in on TSLA. Needham & Company LLC reissued a hold rating on shares of Tesla in a research note on Wednesday, July 24th. UBS Group lowered Tesla from a neutral rating to a sell rating and increased their target price for the stock from $147.00 to $197.00 in a research report on Friday, July 12th. KGI Securities reaffirmed a neutral rating and issued a $236.00 target price on shares of Tesla in a research report on Thursday, July 25th. Guggenheim reaffirmed a sell rating and issued a $134.00 target price on shares of Tesla in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus began coverage on Tesla in a research report on Tuesday, June 25th. They issued a buy rating and a $265.00 target price on the stock. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eighteen have issued a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $204.21.

Tesla Price Performance

TSLA stock opened at $210.73 on Thursday. Tesla has a 1 year low of $138.80 and a 1 year high of $278.98. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.08, a quick ratio of 1.40 and a current ratio of 1.91. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $224.47 and its 200 day moving average price is $193.60. The firm has a market cap of $673.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 53.76, a PEG ratio of 5.80 and a beta of 2.29.

Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 23rd. The electric vehicle producer reported $0.52 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.62 by ($0.10). Tesla had a return on equity of 10.41% and a net margin of 13.00%. The business had revenue of $25.50 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $24.38 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.78 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Tesla will post 1.75 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, Director Robyn M. Denholm sold 66,364 shares of Tesla stock in a transaction dated Thursday, July 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $219.96, for a total value of $14,597,425.44. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 85,000 shares in the company, valued at $18,696,600. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 25.10% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Tesla

A number of hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Bank & Trust Co acquired a new position in Tesla during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Valley Wealth Managers Inc. acquired a new position in Tesla during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in Tesla by 168.8% during the 2nd quarter. Abich Financial Wealth Management LLC now owns 129 shares of the electric vehicle producer’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 81 shares during the period. OLD Point Trust & Financial Services N A acquired a new position in Tesla during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Finally, Kessler Investment Group LLC boosted its position in Tesla by 35.9% during the 2nd quarter. Kessler Investment Group LLC now owns 193 shares of the electric vehicle producer’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 51 shares during the period. 66.20% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Tesla Company Profile

Tesla, Inc designs, develops, manufactures, leases, and sells electric vehicles, and energy generation and storage systems in the United States, China, and internationally. The company operates in two segments, Automotive, and Energy Generation and Storage. The Automotive segment offers electric vehicles, as well as sells automotive regulatory credits; and non-warranty after-sales vehicle, used vehicles, body shop and parts, supercharging, retail merchandise, and vehicle insurance services.